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Powerful IT lessons from “a very odd CIO”

Kerrie Campbell, CIO of Flinders University in South Australia (and PaperCut client), readily describes herself as “a very odd CIO”. This surprising term belies her extraordinary knowledge.

In a recent interview with  ThinkCIO , Kerrie shared three lessons she’s picked up over the years:

  1. How to make tomorrow’s tech relevant today
  2. The underrated importance of being customer-centric
  3. Always ask business what’s NOT a priority

The biggest takeaway I had from the interview was her positioning of IT in the workplace:

Increasing IT’s importance

“The success of IT in the future will depend on how we deliver constant value to the business,” she says. “You become a valued and trusted partner. Rather than some “IT” that’s done to them, we’re doing it WITH them.”

Kerrie’s view is one we share at PaperCut. As a bunch of ex-sysadmins and developers, we’re well aware of the importance of positioning an IT department as something more than a shared service or help desk. The value a well-run, progressive IT department can bring to a workplace is constantly underestimated.

The customer-centric IT department

Ok, there’s something else that I love about her story … the shift to being customer-centric.  Instead of benchmarking against IT roadmaps, Kerrie’s tracking her department’s progress and success against the IT success of her various customers - students and teachers alike.

Take a few minutes to read Kerrie’s story and lessons – they’re well worth learning.

Read the interview on ThinkCIO

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